Thursday, June 23, 2005

Labours representation in parliament is disproportionately high

According to this article, from today's Independent, a new study has found that under one system of proportional representation, at the last election, Labour would have had 120 fewer MPs than they have at present, the Tories would have the same number of MPs, and the Lib Dems would gain an extra 83 seats:

Charles Kennedy yesterday challenged the Prime Minister over his refusal to reform the voting system. In Prime Minister's Questions he asked whether the election result "accurately reflects what the British public voted for on 5 May".
Liberal Democrats tabled a motion calling for "urgent action ... to restore and maintain public confidence in the electoral system".
The research to be published in the book Britain Votes 2005 showed Labour's number of MPs was disproportionately high given their share of the vote.